韓國의 老人 케어福祉 政策에 관한 硏究

Abstract

The aging society dawned in Korea in the year 2000. at the beginning of the 21st century. As of year 2002. the elderly in Korea number 3,770,000 out of 47,680,000. or 7.9% of the total population. The total cost of caring for the elderly stands at 11.1%, with nine productive persons (ages 15-63) supporting one elderly person. In 2019, 17 years from now, the elderly population is projected to reach 7,310,000 out of 50,610,000, or 14.4% of the total population. At the same time, the total cost of care for the elderly is projected to reach 20.2%. with five productive persons supporting one elderly person, thereby entering into an era of so-called aged society. At this rate, the transition from an aging society to an aged society will only take 19 years, the shortest such period known in the world. Certainly, the longer life span achieved through advances in the life sciences and improvements in the quality of life is something to be celebrated. However, with the longer life span inevitably come a variety of chronic diseases of the old age. 86.7% of the elderly in Korea 65 years or older in age suffer from one or more chronic diseases, such as arthritis, back pain, high blood pressure and diabetes. 43.4% of all elderly persons are unfit for independent living; 14.4% are significantly limited in their life activities; and 10.3% are confined to their beds. Such increase in the number of the elderly in need of long-term care in an aged society is an issue common to many countries around the world. Part of this larger issue are concerns such as medical care and social care for the elderly in need of long term care, provision of care services for sustaining daily life activities and ensuring a certain level of comfort, and securing the finances for health care costs, as well as encouraging support and protection by family members. Thus, this study explores policy options for the specialization and systemization of elder care professionals, and discusses the theoretical considerations for care welfare policies in other countries, in an effort to gather some helpful perspectives for our society. Furthermore, this study considers the institutional aspects of and the degree of professionalism in educating and training care professionals currently working in Korea (i.e. home caretakers, caretakers for the ill, nursing assistants, care welfare professionals, and life activity supporters). In doing so, the author of this study, along with a survey of the relevant literature, performed field studies at welfare centers, daycare centers and short-term care facilities for the elderly in the Seoul area, and studies of welfare professionals in convalescent and care facilities, as well as studies of the demands of elderly persons who are clients of such facilities. This study has shown that Korea is in need systemically developing a pool of elder care welfare service professionals, like the main OECD countries. Such policy can be legislated by brining social welfare professionals and care welfare professionals together under Article 5 of the Social Welfare Work Law, or by enacting a new Care Welfare Professionals Law. On the other hand, to enhance the professionalism of care welfare workers and to improve the medical care for the elderly, the two-year specialized college course (leading to a care welfare professional level-1 qualification) should consist of a first year of medicine, nursing, and public health administration, leading first to qualification as a nursing assistant, and a second year of theoretical and practical training in social welfare and care theories and techniques. Such proposed curriculum would develop new care welfare workers that are competent professionals in both health and welfare care, by integrating training in the important areas of public health and welfare. In addition, the government should institute a care insurance to help the poor elderly and to ease the financial burden on the families of the elderly receiving care. Such care insurance will allow all elderly persons to freely access care services. A privatized insurance system can be developed at the same time to give those elderly persons with more financial resources a wider choice of care. Lastly, this study proposes ways to improve the administration and delivery of care services, so that they can be better and more readily accessed from home. This study is the first Ph.D. thesis on these topics in Korea, and should be made available to other scholars to contribute to better policy making in developing care professionals and improving the long-term care system.